http://www.benturner.com/robinhood/
"RESCUE FROM THE SHERIFF'S CASTLE"
A tall man of medium build approaches you as you look curiously inside
his door. From head to toe, the man is covered in the finest fabrics. A
thick, green jerkin hangs off his broad shoulders, reaching down to the
lincoln-green tights wrapped closely to his legs. Because of the man's
gentle, yet wise countenance, you are not intimidated by his size. The
warmth emitted from a fireplace inside combined with the ranger's
welcoming gestures coax you into sitting down.
"Welcome, visitor! Thou hast prolly heard m'name before, as word
o'mouth passes much faster than the likes o'e'en a hawk. I am Robin
o'Locksley, leader of the finest bandits in all the lands! Come, let us
meet the others."
The man had captured your attention so much that you hardly noticed a
small band of people sitting comfortably by the fireplace. A fine maiden
with flowing black hair pats on a cushion next to her, invitingly. How
could you decline?
"Dinna let thy shyness overcome thy curiosity, visitor!" Robin says.
He proceeds to point to people in order starting from your left. "Meet
m'love Marian to thy left." You greet her as any guest would and she
returns a charming twinkle in her soft eyes. "And then there's Little
John and his wife, Much, and Allan. I wish thou couldst meet Scarlet as
well, but he's busy chasing after women, his usual hobby." Everyone
chuckles quietly, easing you into chuckling yourself.
"We were just telling stories, m'new friend. Care to join in? Judging
by your looks, I'd say you would make a fine bard! Here, let me catch you
up..."
"'Twas a dark an' stormy night in the lands near Barnsdale, leaving
the roads in no condition for traveling. Howe'er, a message holding
contents which had no regard to the weather had to be delivered to the
small village as quickly as possible. Little John had sent his fastest
man with the message just past evenin', hoping 'twould arrive in enough
time. I see by t'expression on thine own eyes that thou dost wish to know
what the message contained, eh? On it was written, " < Come quick,
m'lord! The Sheriff has slain Blakely, the merchant, and has taken his
daughter! > What a gross injustice the Sheriff has paid our village!
We pray you will assist us in seeking revenge!"
"When I received such a message, I was aghast with the Sheriff's new
audacity. Long did I ponder what to do next, calling upon Marian's
intuition for guidance. Finally, I decided to seek the bloodthirsty
Sheriff with my best men and aimed to rid good Nottingham of his filth.
"As we started our journey through the thick forests, < faint sounds
could be heard coming from far-off in the darkness: the chirping of
crickets as they moved about their nightly chores and the occasional hoot
of an owl. A crisp wind knifed through my cloak, chilling me to the bone
and raising the hair on the back of my neck. The moon rose majestically
out from behind a dark cloud illuminating Nottingham Castle and the
surrounding countryside in a blue-white light. From my vantage point, on
a small hill overlooking the castle, I spotted the Sheriff riding hard
along the path leading to Nottingham. His crimson cloak flapping
lifelessly in the wind. Draped across the front of his saddle was a
figure, which, I assumed, was Blakely's daughter. Leaving my position on
the hill I went back to ask Robin to assemble his Merry Men, and quickly
devised a plan to rescue the kidnapped woman. We had decided to enter the
castle disguised as merchants from far-off lands, and would attempt this
idea when the guard was changing watch at dawn. >
"Quite a few hours remained before the majestic sun would rise above
the tall trunks of the forest, but we had trained our bodies to be able to
take catnaps, similar to those our domesticated felines would take. As
some of my men dreamed about having happy families, slaying a dragon, or
tying down a lusty wench to a bed, the hours between night and day flew
quickly. As quickly as we had fallen asleep, it was time to arise to put
our plan into effect.
"Taking charge of my small band, I told them, "< When the next
merchant comes through here, seek to purchase his clothes, horse, wagon
and wares, so that we may guise ourselves and successfully enter into
Nottingham town without suspicion. Once inside, you will take up your
assigned positions to await my signal, while Marian and I seek audience
with the Sheriff, posing as Blidworth villagers come to complain about a
shortshrifting miller. >"
"My men impressed me with their loyalty, and almost immediately they
jumped up to get started on their newly-assigned project. Not
surprisingly, it did not take long for a rather short merchant carrying
plenty of rarely-used goods to come near the Merry Men's hidden location.
I sent a few of the younger men to barter with the merchant, glad that I
found a task to keep them busy and out of trouble. Their boyish charms
easily got them the equipment we needed, and after a few minutes of
changing clothes (and my peeking at my dear Marian while she was putting
on a peasant's outfit to keep her on her toes), we were ready to enter
Nottingham.
"We went in groups of five, filing into the large crowd of people eager
to enter the city to complete their morning chores. Almost all of us had
gotten into the city walls before one of my men screamed out to a
pickpocket near him, "Hey, keep out of there!" This drew the guards'
attention and they began to head in the man's direction. "They'll spot
the dagger under his cloak," Marian whispered. We tried to remain as
inconspicuous as possible as we watched the guard get closer to the
man...
" < Luckily, my man wasted no time in trying to keep the attention
of the guard away from him, and on to the pickpocket. "That gutter-rat!"
He screamed, pointing at the fleeing man. "He tried to take me lace! He
had his filthy hands on me expensive, imported lace!" My man then turned
around to his wares to inspect for ruin, glancing up to shake his fist,
while the guard trotted through the crowd after the thief. >
"We breathed a sigh of relief after this particular problem was over
and we returned to the original plan. All of my men had made it into the
city now and we carried on with the next part of our plan. Marian and I
requested an audience with the Sheriff while everyone else took strategic
positions inside the walls. Little John went to search for the merchant's
daughter, with luck finding her before our cover was blown.
"The plan went into effect and we were all nervous about whether it
would succeed or not. < Holding a basket of silks and lace, Little
John hurried about with eager mien of a merchant to groups of women,
hoping to learn news of, or espy the captive maiden. A small few of the
younger, and more haughty ladies displayed their high-born delicateness by
way of upturned nose, while others, more curious -- or older, whose
attitudes have become less pretentious, investigated the textiles with
interest. Little John turned out to be pleasant company for the women,
for he chatted merrily and winked so naughtily as to make the ladies
laugh. His tall, strong body did not hurt his appeal, as the women became
more talkative around him. It took a better part of an hour, after some
of his goods were sold, that he was able to inquire if there be more
ladies in the castle who have not yet had the good fortune to meet up
with his lusty self. "Well", said one, "If you would rather not try to
sell your goods to the servants, you can try to sell someting to that
uncouth thing in the tower!" Some giggled, while others became quiet,
with looks of sympathy in their eyes. "It is shameful that our lord
should treat a lass that way." One of the older ones replied,
"Unfortunatly, it's his way; if any one of us had not the rank of lady, he
would treat her the same." There was silence for a short while until
Little John, in a cheery, yet sympathetic voice, asked which way was it to
the tower. They pointed down the Great Hall, then told him to turn left
when he got to the end. He made a deep and flourishing bow, then backed
away a few steps before he turned from them and skipped in an ungainly
fashion down the Great Hall, amid the laughter of the ladies. As he
skipped past the Sheriff who was talking to two villagers, he stopped long
enough to take a bow, then acknowledged the husband and wife as if he did
not know them, then resumed his skipping until he got to the end of the
Hall, where he found a long passage on the left. He skipped down it while
looking for a tower entrance. > "
These words send the whole room into uncontrollable fits of laughter
while Little John blushes feverishly. Skipping? Winking? How unlike the
masculine John Little! Uproariously funny! Even Marian laughs so hard
she begins to cough, and Little John immediately gives her the evil eye
(adding to the hilarity of it all).
" < Little John espied steps going up into the wall on the right and
skipped toward them.
"Ho there, thou big oaf!" challenged the guard who was standing at the
foot of the steps, "Where art thou going?" Lifting up his basket for the
guard to see, Little John replied, "Why, I did get permission from,"
cupping his hands around his mouth and yelling toward the Hall, "THE MOST
BEAUTIFUL GODDESSES IN ALL OF CHRISTIANDOM..." He could not tell if they
heard, and he could not hear or see anybody in the Hall from where he
was. "...To sell these lovely things to a lovely lass," John finished,
and then pointed up toward the steps.
"The guard's eyes involuntarily followed where Little John was
pointing, then he looked toward the Hall, then back to Little John, and
growled, "All right then, get on with it, but dinnut take too long!"
"John made a small bow, then trotted lightly up the steps. A few
seconds later, he came back down with a rather sheepish grin on his face.
"Me lord" said he, "Would you be so kind as to lend me a torch?" The
guard rolled his eyes and sighed. With a show of superiority, he took
long and stomping steps to the nearest torch, took it off the wall, then
handed it to Little John.
"John took the torch while pulling his forelock, then proceeded back up
the steps. The steps were dark and winding, with occasional slivers of
light where arrow slits were. At each level he passed were chambers used
for various purposes: some for residing, some for storage of goods --
shapes of things John could not make out in the darkness. At last, at the
top, he came upon a closed door, and knocked... > "
"Little John expected the soft, yet passionate voice of a woman to
answer him, but was instead answered with a gruff, deep voice of a man.
John began to panic a bit, wondering if the man inside would be suspicious
of John's attempts, or if he would give way easily. Again, the Merry
Men's plan was put to the test...
"Yes?" the voice questioned from within. "I've come to offer the sweet
woman some gifts out of my own generousity and love," Little John replied.
"Very well then," said the disembodied voice. Seconds later, the large
cell door began to open...
" < Little John took a deep breath and made to be pleasant as the door
opened. He recognized Guy of Gisbourn. Guy of Gisbourn recognized him.
They both stood there for a few seconds, with their mouths open, until it
entered into Guy's head to draw his sword to slay Robin Hood's famous
Lieutenant, thereby increasing his celebrity status and insuring the
increase in his wealth by the reward he'll receive. He reached for his
sword, but his fingers grasped air. He then looked down toward his left hip,
and realized he had taken his sword belt off, then he looked toward the far
wall against which he had lain his sword and other accouterments. His
consternation became fascination as he watched that wall rush toward him in
such an uncharacteristic manner, while noticing a peculiar numbness on the
right side of his head. The wall slammed into him with such force as to
send him slamming onto the floor, where he lay still; too stunned to move.
His hearing was still in good working order though, because he heard the
wench gasp, and the sound of Little John's boots quickly crossing the floor.
John picked Guy up with one hand and punched him again with the other,
assuring Guy's full co-operation with letting himself become bound, hand
and foot, and his mouth gagged. As John walked toward the bed to tear
strips from the sheet, he signaled to the girl to stay quiet so she can be
rescued. Being no idiot, she helped him rip the sheet into enough strips to
disable Guy, and also helped him with the binding. She pulled the ends of
the strip outward with brute ferocity while making the first knot on the
wrists, as the scene of her father's death played over and over again in her
mind's eye. She tightened her throat to keep from releasing the sounds of
sobbing, but she could not keep the tears from falling down from eyes that
looked insane with anger.
"Little John stood up with a grunt and looked down, with hurried
satisfaction, on the prone, still body, then brought his eyes up fully
upon the object of his rescue for the first time. It was no mystery as to
why men would desire her; but the expression on her face as she looked
down upon Guy brought up the feeling of angry sympathy in John, which
caused him to wonder if he should take the time to slit Guy's throat. He
pulled out his knife and kneeled at Guy's head, but when the girl saw what
he was about to do, she softly spoke: "He's not the one who killed my
father." John's blade wavered above the throat for a short while before
he stood up again and sheathed the knife. His reputation is the kind that
does not involve the killing of unarmed men; though at this time, he
wished he lacked the conscience to care.
"He walked to the door and stared down the stair-well while tapping his
left fingers on his face in thought. He then turned back toward the girl
who was now watching him. He studied her clothes, and then looked at
Gisbourn. "You need to exchange that gown for his hosen." She looked
back at Gisbourn, then proceeded to take off her gown while John walked
over to Guy to take his hosen off. John slid the hosen down Guy's legs
until the crotch came to the ankle, then he had to cut open the crotch
so that the hosen would slip off around the binding. He then gave it to
the girl so she can put it on. While she was stepping into it, he looked
out the window. It was much too high to go out that way, even if strips
of bedding were tied together. They had to go down the stairs. The girl
tucked the end of her chemise inside the waist of the hosen, then fastened
the hosen. The fold of her chemise hung at mid-thigh. John looked around
for a doublet or jacket for her to wear over the chemise, but there was
none. The one Guy was wearing was too recognizable as Gisbourn's.
"Come on." he whispered, and walked out, with torch in hand, onto the
steps.
"Wait!" she whispered, and trotted over to Gisbourn. She saw that he
had regained consciousness and was glaring at her; which made her shudder
as she searched him for the keys. When she found them, she ran out the
door and carefully and silently locked it behind her. Firmly grasping the
keys together to keep them from jingling, she followed Little John down the
winding steps toward the uncertainty that awaits them. >
"As the two cautiously descended the steps, the faint sounds of the
people in the other parts of the castle could be heard. John had regained
his calm composure and the girl hid timidly behind him.
"The steps seemed much more numerous on the way down, Little John
thought, and he kept to the sides of the staircase. Because he was
distracted by the possibility of having to defend the maiden, John missed
the spider's cobweb completely. When he walked into it, he jumped in
fright, the metal parts of his outfit clanking against the walls."
At this point, the story stops to allow the laughter to die down in the
hut. Poor John, made fun of for his least manly moments! After giggling
and chuckling ceases, Robin continues his story...
" < Gathering his composure, and picking cob webs off his face, he
turned to the lass and motioned her into the dark storeroom they had come
to, and whispered to her that his master, Robin Hood, had people who were
stationed about the castle to rescue her. She was to remain hidden in
this room until a group of his friends came back to get her. John
couldn't think of any other way to do it; he knew she couldn't just walk
past the guard and into the Hall. She carefully stepped her way toward
the back of the room, and behind sacks of grain and waited.
"Little John walked nonchalantly down the rest of the way and cheerfully
gave the torch back to the guard while thanking him for its use. "Thou didst
take thy time!" complained the guard.
"Aye! My silks and laces are pretty -- and the lass took delight in
examining them, and choosing!"
"Methinks she chose them all then!" the guard replied in wry surprise.
Little John had to fight to keep the look of disgust off his face as he
realized he had forgotten the basket. The struggle with his facial
expression worked in his favor however, as he took a step toward the guard
and in a low voice said, "The lass found much to her liking all right --
but Lord Gisbourn took a liking to them too, and he convinced me that I
ought to "donate" them to him, for charity's sake."
"At this, the guard leaned back and guffawed loudly, clearly enjoying
Little John being victimized by Gisbourn's well-known, but little-mentioned
practice of thievery. Little John sighed forlornly as he walked toward the
Great Hall, listening to the guard continously chuckling to himself. The
atmosphere was much more noisy now, as there was hustle and bustle about the
Hall in preparation for the Sheriff's dinner, and Little John was able to
walk through the Hall and out into the courtyard without being noticed. He
shaded his eyes against the noon brightness as he walked toward a group of
young men playing at knucklebones. He stood amongst them with his thumbs in
his belt, watching, then after a short while, crouched among them as if to
join them in play. In a low voice, he said: "The lass is waiting now."
"Where is she?"
"In the second storeroom in the tower to the left of the Great Hall.
Thou goest all the way down to the end of the hall and turn left. The
entrance to the tower is the second door on the right, and a guard is
standing there. The Hall is busy now, with the preparation of dinner, so
hopefully, if thou all look as if thou belongst there and going about thy
business, no one will question thee as thou walk through. Thou wilst also
need this." And he pulled out several strips of the sheet and gave them to
one of the men. "These are for the guard if he catches on to what thou art
doing."
"Aye -- let's go lads." And one stood up, slapping another on the back
as he said out loud, "We've go work to do lads. Get on!" And they all got
up, talking and laughing as they sauntered toward the Hall. >
"Meanwhile, the other hidden bandits and I kept a close watch on the
activity of the guard, seeing if we'd caught on to the plan. Suddenly,
shouts echoed through the castle and guards twitched reflexively for their
swords. After a twinge of worry on my face, I decided what to do...
" < Knowing that the Sheriff was preparing a feast, I entered an
empty laundry room, dressed up in royal servant's clothes, and pretended
to be getting grain from the storeroom for the Sheriff. The rest of my
Merry Men incited the guards and then ran with the Sheriff's men close on
their heels. Once the guards were distracted, I snuck into the storeroom
where the maiden was waiting. The lady and I emptied out a sack of wheat
and the maiden got in. I carried the sack easily, muscles bunched, and
carefully shambled through the halls without being noticed. As soon as the
maid was safe outside of the gates, I instructed her to run to Sherwood
Forest, "godspeed!" As soon as I thought she was safe, I blew my horn
three times and the Merry Men came loyally running out. They had just
conquered the guards and they all ran back to Sherwood with the
adrenaline of victory. > "